The Road to Humility

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Gen 1:1)  He is God.  He is Creator.  As Creator, there is more Scripture to define Him.  For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through Him and for Him. (Col 1:16)  So not only are all things in His creation sourced by His Holy will, but all things belong to Him.  They are His, and in His mercy He provides all things to accomplish His holy will.

In that image of His will being accomplished through His creation, He remains all-powerful.  I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come.  I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’” (Isa 46:10)

In His nature, He is beyond the limits of nature.  Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. (1Kings 8:27)

He is Sovereign, our King, the King of kings and Lord of lords. (1Tim 6:15)

What more do we need to say to establish the credentials of our God?  He is the Creator of all things, He is above all things, He is the Ruler of all things.

Having said ALL of this:

Within these next two weeks we, who hope to be found worthy to be called servants of our God, will become witnesses, not of some monumental display of superiority, but of monumental humility.

He Who sits eternally at the right hand of the Father in His glory comes within the womb of a young maiden, to be born as is any human being, and to be laid in a manger, a feeding trough for animals.  He comes offering the fullness of God to be united to us in fullness as Man.  And in His divine offering, He creates a path to salvation for all of humanity—for all who will choose to receive the gift He brings.

What do we see as we gaze into the cave where He is laid as a child?  We see His Virgin Mother, one who loves Him as the Child she has carried these many months, but one who loves Him in a way that must include, even if imperfectly, the vision of His divinity, for she knows His conception is beyond nature.  We find lowly animals, witnesses from His creation to His arrival.  We find an elderly man who will offer himself as a guardian for as long as He determines is Joseph’s lot.  We find hosts of angels offering glory to God.

There is a Stichera on Lord I Call from the Vespers of Nativity that speaks to what the world has to offer in return.

What shall we offer You, O Christ, Who for our sakes has appeared on earth as man?  Every creature made by You offers thanks: Angels offer their hymn, and the heavens a star.  Wise men bring gifts as the shepherds won-der.  The earth offers a cave, and the wilderness offers a manger.  And we, Your people, offer You a virgin mother! O Pre-eternal God, have mercy on us!

He Who will come again in glory comes now in humility.  He Who comes to give His life for His creation comes to assume that life so that He can show us the way to salvation.  And we, like the angels, stand in awe and wonder at His humility for us and his mercy towards us.

A Simple Message From St. Paul

 Many of Saint Paul’s writings require in-depth study and explanation from the Holy Fathers to grasp his message.

Not so in today’s lesson from Ephesians 4:1-6!

1)  Walk worthy of the calling with which you were called.  The Lord has blessed each of us with talents, abilities, capabilities, gifts, assets—all of which are different for each of us, but all of which He sent to us because He gives to us that which is necessary for our own salvation.  If He has blessed me with the ability to speak well, then St. Paul is saying, “Use your ability to bring glory to God.”  If I’ve been blessed with talents to build things, then St. Paul is saying, “Build to the glory of God!”  In whatever gifts He has sent to me, use them not JUST to some kind of self-aggrandizement (laying up treasures for myself), but share His gifts with others who can benefit from what He has gifted to me!

2) Be lowly, gentle, and longsuffering.  Another way of phrasing this would be to be meek.  Understand that there is sin within vainglory, and there is nothing gained when one sews division.  We are to bear with the shortcomings of others, and not only bear with, but use our God-given abilities and spiritual gifts to make up for their deficiencies when He so directs us.

3) Bearing with one another in love.  Indeed, love overcomes all division, and leaves no room for either animosity or selfishness.

4) Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Did you ever wonder why ’peace’ is called for so often during a Divine Liturgy.  It’s well over 40 times.  The Liturgy opens with In peace, let us pray to the Lord, and it ends with the “Prayer Before the Ambo” which ends with the words, Give peace to Your world, to Your churches, to Your priests, to all those in civil authority, and to all Your people.  Unity is a fruit of peace between God’s people.

5) There is one Body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling.  This calling is made to each of us.  Each of us are servants of the same Master.  He may call upon me now, and you later.  He will have differing tasks for each of us, dependent upon those skills and gifts with which He has blessed each of us.  And we will each do different things in answer to His call.  And in the unity St. Paul is calling for, I will pray for you to serve Him well, as you will pray for me.

6) One Lord, one faith, one baptism.  We serve the same Lord based upon the foundation of a faith that is also shared.  Individual tools, skills and abilities differ, but the guiding beliefs which direct each of us to use those gifts to His glory are the same.

7) One God and Father of all, Who is above all, and through all, and in you all.  You don’t see “your god” while I see a different god.  There is One God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Together we serve Him.  He has one purpose, and He directs us individually to serve His Divine purpose with the skills and abilities with which He has blessed us.

I can’t answer for you.  As for me, I fail too often to seek His will as I go through my day.  For this I repent.  But I know as in 2) above that you have expended effort—love, prayer, support—when you’ve seen me faltering and failing.

And so each of us should give thanks to the One Who is making us worthy of the calling to which we were called.  And we should give thanks to one another, who have together been  lowly, gentle, and longsuffering towards one another, as we together bear with one another in love.

Do This and You Will Live

We all know the parable of the Good Samaritan.  We typically remember it as, “Do unto others..”  The actual words used in today’s Gospel are, Go and do likewise, referring to showing mercy as did the Samaritan.

Between these two statements, one that ‘opens’ todays Gospel and one that ‘closes’ it, is contained the fullness of what it means to be a Christian, a follower of Christ.

Our Lord’s statement, Do this and you will live, is pointed toward the ‘certain lawyer’s’ answer to our Lord’s asking him to interpret his own understanding of what scripture teaches about eternal salvation.  Each of us daily assesses What must I do (today) to be found worthy of entering into the Kingdom of Heaven—’Eternal Life’?  The answer given by the man is affirmed by God the Son.  The answer was, focusing on self, I must love the Lord my God with all my heart, all my soul, all my strength, and all my mind, and along with that, I must love my neighbor as myself.

Today’s focus is the ‘Good Samaritan,’ but let’s together delve into the first part of the man’s answer.

1) I must love God with all my heart:  What is the heart in terms of meaning to this commandment? In one sense, the heart is the source of our life.  While our hearts beat, we live.  In another sense it is the source of our bonding with others.  Love is a bond between hearts.  And so this commandment is saying to us that we must dedicate that which gives us life and that which gives us love FULLY—using all my heart—to loving my Lord and my God.

2) I must love God with all my soul:  The first part above dedicates everything physical about me to loving God.  This portion dedicated everything spiritual about me to loving Him.  I must use all my soul to love Him.

3) I must love God with all my strength:  Strength is a capacity to accomplish a goal.  St. Isaac the Syrian says, ‘Whoever prematurely begins a work that is above his strength receives nothing, but only brings harm upon himself.  I must expend all my capacity, all my effort to loving my Lord and my God!

4) I must love God with all my mind:  In short, I can’t be preoccupied with the things of THIS world.  I must have focus, dedicating all that effort in 3) by using my intellect to direct my love—towards my Lord and my God.

Finally, the last portion of the man’s answer puts meat on the bone of the first portion of the answer.  I must love my neighbor as myself.  If I were to accomplish (in my own evaluation of self) ALL of the previous four, but never reached out with my heart to my neighbor, never dedicated my spirit to serving my neighbor, never exerted my strength for the benefit of my neighbor, never focused on the needs of my neighbor as opposed to my own needs, or in my case too often my own desires, then they have all been done in vain!

Our Lord’s instructions to us to qualify as followers, to bear the Holy Name of ‘Christian’, are not so onerous.  Lord, give to us each day the heart, the soul, the strength, and the mind to love the least of Your brethren, for in loving them, we show our love for You.  Help us to find our paths to eternal life in Your heavenly Kingdom!

Glory to Jesus Christ!  Glory forever!